Eagles Top Montana, Clinch Bye into Big Sky Semis

Apr 20, 2008

April 20, 2008

The Eastern Washington University men's tennis team finished off its incredible 2008 regular season with a 6-1 road victory over Montana on Sunday morning (April 20). The victory clinched for Eastern sole possession of second place in the Big Sky Conference standings and the second seed at the Big Sky Championship.

The victory moved Eastern Washington's overall record to 16-6 and its league is now complete at 7-1. The Eagles have already set school records this year (in the NCAA Division I era) for overall wins, Big Sky wins and winning percentage. The Eagles will enter the Big Sky Tournament riding a six-match winning streak.

The Eagles, by virtue of being the No. 2 seed, have earned an automatic bye into the semifinal round of the Big Sky Tournament and will play either third-seeded Weber State, No. 4 Montana State or fifth-seeded Northern Arizona at 2 p.m. on Saturday (April 26). Sacramento State is hosting the Championship at Gold River Racquet Club in Gold River, Calif.

The Eastern Washington University women's tennis team split a pair of matches on Saturday (April 19), defeating Lewis-Clark State 6-1 in the morning before falling to Idaho by the same score in the evening. Both matches took place in Lewiston, Idaho.

The Eagles (9-13) have now won nine matches this year, their most in 15 years. Since Eastern Washington joined the NCAA Division I ranks in 1984, the Eagles have only won more than nine matches on four occasions, in 1993 (10-8), 1989 (11-13), 1988 (11-14) and 1984 (16-8).

In singles, Knox, Dolack, Marie Demerath, Berger and Judy Liening were victorious against their respective Lewis-Clark State opponents.

The Eagles (4-4 Big Sky Conference) now sets its sights on the Big Sky Conference Championship. First up for the fifth-seeded Eagles will be No. 4 Montana (8-11, 5-3 BSC) at 10 a.m. on Friday (April 25). The Gold River Racquet Club in Gold River, Calif., is hosting the Championship.